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The wait is over. Uruguay and Argentina will resume international competition at the elite level. Los Teros will have home advantage against Los Pumas in a capped test match. As part of the July 2024 Internationals, the neighboring countries will compete in Maldonado on July 20.
The current best two teams from the Western Hemisphere will lock horns for the first fully-capped match in nine years. The Argentina XV, rather than Los Pumas facd Uruguay regularly from 2016-2023. In 2024 the rivalry Teros vs Pumas will resume.
The venue for the match will not be the regular home of Uruguay, the Estadio Charrúa and nor will it be in the capital city of Montevideo. Instead, Uruguay vs Argentina will be played at Maldonado. Pictured below, the Estadio Maldonado Domingo Burgueño is located near the beach resort destination of Punta del Este.
Uruguay has previously played home matches at the Estadio Maldonado Domingo Burgueño. The stadium was used during the Americas Rugby Championship (2016-2019), for example Brazil and Canada both played against Los Teros at the venue in 2017. The Argentina XV also played ARC matches at the stadium.
The Estadio Maldonado Domingo Burgueño is a larger than the regular home venue. The Estadio Charrúa in Montevideo seats 14,000 while the Maldonado venue seats 25,000. Los Teros will play their other two July home matches at the regular home venue in Montevideo. The Estadio Charrúa is pictured below.
Uruguay vs Argentina will be a one-off fixture. Argentina will play two home matches against France beforehand, doing so in Mendoza and Buenos Aires. Los Teros vs Los Pumas will also be one of three July Internationals for the Uruguayans.
For decades on end, Uruguay and Argentina competed in the South American Championship. The first meeting was in 1951. Argentina were 62-0 winners in Buenos Aires. Los Teros and Los Pumas played regular until long after the first Rugby World Cup in 1987.
Changes came with Argentina’s move to professionalism with Los Jaguares joining Super Rugby in 2016. The last test match between Argentina and Uruguay was in the 2015 South American Championship. Argentina’s 36-14 win featured big name players including Santiago Cordero, Jerónimo de la Fuente, Facundo Isa, Pablo Matera, Julián Montoya and Guido Petti.
Los Pumas did not face Uruguay in 2016-2023; however, there was regular competition, during this period, in the form of the next-of-XV, the Argentina XV. There were fifteen matches between Uruguay and the Argentina XV during this period. Uruguay won 5, including the most recent match which was played at the Estadio Charrúa.
The resumption of Uruguay vs Argentina international competition in July will see the 40th test match played between the Rio de la Plata neighbors. Los Pumas are unbeaten with a 39-0 record to their name.
Unlike all prior matches between Argentina and Uruguay, there is now a High Performance Rugby Center in Uruguay and a professional team. Peñarol won back-to-back titles in the South American league in 2023 and 2023. Super Rugby Americas 2023 helped prepare the bulk of the roster for Rugby World Cup 2023.
Three out of four of Uruguay’s performances at Rugby World Cup 2023 were deemed positive. Los Teros opened by pushing France in a competitive match in Lille. Having taken-it to Les Bleus, Uruguay then had high hopes against Italy in Nice. The South Americans led the Six Nations opponent at half-time but were overpowered in the second-half. Uruguay then added an African scalp of World Cup wins by beating Namibia in Lyon.
Uruguay were not alone in calling for more opportunities at Tier 1 opposition. The July 20 match will provide Uruguay with a real challenge. Win, lose or draw the match is very appropriate as would be having it become an annual fixture once again.
